James b



(No Model.)

J. B. PHILLIPS;

BUSTLE.

No. 295,584. Patented Mar. 25, 1884.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES B. PHILLIPS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.,

I IBUSTLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 295,584, dated March25, 1884,

Application filed January 10, 1884. (No model.)

To a. whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J AMES B. PHILLIPS, of New York city, in the countyand State of New York, have invented. certain new and usefulImprovements in Stiffeners for Bustles or other Articles of Wearing-Apparel of which the following is a specification.

My improvements apply to that class of stiffeners or springs in bustlesor other articles of Wearingapparel which are provided with a series ofparallel pocketsinclosing springs, which extend from side to side, andare held in a more or less bent condition by means of lacings, whichextend across and connect the edges, and may be adjusted in tightness soas to give any desired degree of fullness to the bustle. I haveconceived and practically wrought out important improvements in thesprings.

The followingis a description of what I consider the best meansofcarrying out the invention. v

I sew together, by hand or by any suitable machine, three coarse braidsof straw. I can use successfully Dunstable, Milan, or Canton straw. Iprefer to use what is known as the Davis sewing-machine, or the Palmerstrawsewing machine. The thread is preferably coarse, and applied withonly moderate tension. Around this aggregation of straw braids I wind,at one or more operations, a sufliciently thick envelope ofcottonbatting or other unwoven fibrous material to give an approximatelysmooth and even surface. The material of the bustle being sewedtogether, except that one side is left open, exposing all the pockets toreceive the springs, and the partially made construction being laid flaton the work-table, a metal funnel is introduced successively in the openend of each pocket, and one of the compound soft-covered springs iseasily entered through the aperture thus held open and thrust in untilits end meets the further end of the pocket. Then the spring is cut off,and, taking care to have the soft envelope snugly compressed on thestraw at the entering end, the funnel is changed tothe next pocket andthe operation repeated. Then a line of stitching up and down the side-5o'closes all the pockets, and on applying the lacings and drawing theedges toward each line.

other to the proper extent and tying the lacings the bustle is complete.

The accompanying drawings form a part of this specificatio Figure 1 isan elevation showing the inner face; Fig. 2, a vertical section,slightly in perspective. Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the springs whichare inserted in the pockets. It is on a larger scale than Fig. 2. Fig. 4is a correspondin g cross-section through the braid alone. Fig. 5 showsa modification in which only a single strand of straw braid is employed.Fig. 6 is a section through the metal funnel which I introduce intheseveral pockets successively to facilitate the introduction of mypeculiar bat-covered springs.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures.

A B O are three braids of Dunstable strawone upon the otherthe middleone being preferably the widest.

D is the line of confining-stitches, and E the envelope' of cottonbatting. The latter is wound so that the fiber extends around ratherthan longitudinally of the spring. G is the exterior of the bustle. Itis formed of two or other number of pieces of silesia or other suitablefabric cut and applied together so as to give the desired swell in thevertical G is the corresponding inner fabric. These are joined by linesof stitching g, extending from side to side. I place two lines ofstitching 9 near together. They define the narrow portions of the fabricof the bustle, which are not distended by the springs. The wider spacesform pockets extending continuously across from one side of the bustleto the other.

H is the lacing rove through eyelets J in narrow pieces of fabric I,which extend up and down on each edge of the bustle, and are secured bya line of stitching, i.

In applying the parts together, when the lines of stitching gareproduced and the binding I is secured on one side, the spaces betweenthe two fabrics G and G are ready to serve as pockets, being opened atthe unsewed side. M M is the funnel, the rounded flange M lying outside,and the body M lying within the mouth of the pocket when in position foruse.- After my compound spring has been IOO inserted and cut off at'theproper length in each pocket, the binding I is sewed 'on the oppositeedge, thus closing the pockets 9'. A lacing, H, will usually be insertedand secured with the proper tension after the other portions of the workare completed.

My lacingsH are of what is known as elastica core of soft vulcanizedrubber covered with cotton, silk, or other fibrous material braided on.The combined effect of my springs A B O D E in the body G G and of theelastic lacing H gives a yielding and yet persistent form, which is easyfor the wearer and highly advantageous.

I can use more than three of the braids, or two may serve successfully.The cotton-batting may be applied in asufficiently thick bat wound onlyonce around, with a slight over-'- lap; or it may be wound on spirallyor otherwise vin a very thin layer, so that ten or other considerablenumbers will be applied to produce the desired thickness. The thicknessof the cotton may be varied. Other material than cottonas coarse woolmayserve. I prefer cotton, as my experiments indicate that it maintains itsposition in the act of inserting the springs, and serves well ininsuring a smoothly rounded appearance in the several distended pocketswhen the construction is complete and ready for use. The covering mayserve with some success largely intermingled with shoddy. A single strawbraid made of proper size and of a round or approximately round form mayserve with some success, instead of the three shown. Fig. 5 is across-section of one of the springs made in that manner by a singlebraid with the bat of fiber wound on as a covering in the same manner asit is wound on in what I esteem the preferable form. (Shown in Figs. 2and 3.)

I believe that other straw than Dunstable, Milan, or Canton may be used.Mixtures of different straws may be used without serious disadvantage.

It will be readily understood that the bending of the bustle after thepockets are filled tends to contract and wrinkle those faces of thepockets which are presented on the inner side of the bustle next to theperson; but the exterior is eminently smooth and faultless inappearance.

I claim as my invention 1. As a new article of manufacture, a spring orstiffener for wearing-apparel, consisting of straw braids, one upon theother, the braids being bound together and enveloped in a covering ofunwoven fibrous material, substantially as set forth. I l

2. In combination with a bustle, a spring consisting of straw braids,one upon the other, the braids being united by stitches D and envelopedin a covering of cotton-batting, substantially as shown and described,for the purpose set forth. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set myhand, at New York city, New York, this 8th day of January, 1884, in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES B. PHILLIPS.

Witnesses:

W. O. DEY, CHARLES R. SEARLE.

